The Solution

When pondering their very own green building and "the Three R's" associated with the green building movement (reduce, reuse, recycle), Bill and Mary Andolsek started with the recycling aspect first and foremost.

The couple decided to raze an existing home in the northeast sector of Salt Lake City, and replace it with a much greener home more to their liking. But from the onset of the project, the Andolseks focused on recycling.

It started with the 25-ft-high stone tower that was originally built (along with a wall) in the early 1920s as part of the entrance to a golf course. The golf course never materialized, and the land surrounding the turret was eventually put to use as a school and later developed as a residential neighborhood. The Andolseks decided to reinforce the tower and use it as a central architectural element of their new home.